One of the first items of business in a new Congress in either chamber is the passage of an organizing resolution. The organizing resolution sets up details of who the various party leaders are, what the committee chairs are, and most importantly, the ratios assigned to each committee. In the Senate, some committee ratios are set by statute or other custom. The Ethics Committee has 3 members from each party, the Intelligence Committee allows only a 1-seat edge, and the Joint Economic Committee allows only a 2-seat edge. Other than those few, however, all other committees generally have their ratios set according to the proportion of seats each party holds in the Senate at large.

Before the 2008 elections, Democrats only had 51 members, and so they typically only held a single-seat edge on any given committee. Now, however, they have 58 members, with 59 being almost assured. This would generally mean that Democrats would have 3-seat advantages on the committees, allowing them to lose someone on any given vote and still prevail. Normally, the organizing resolution doesn't result in a lot of drama, but this year it looked like Republicans might try to force (subscription only) Democrats to keep to only a 2-seat advantage, which would not allow them to lose any members in a vote. Why is this important? Simply put, everything goes through at least one committee. Committees are where hearings are held, committees are where subpoenas are issued, committees are where bills are introduced, committees are mostly where bills are amended. If something important is happening in the Senate and it isn't a vote on cloture or final passage, it is likely happening in committee. By allowing themselves a 1-vote hedge, Democrats can be more aggressive in pursuing their agenda than they could without it, and this is something Republicans weren't thrilled about.

So the normal course of affairs would be that Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) would threaten a filibuster, Democrats would agree that the organizing resolution would need 60 votes to pass, and Democrats would be left with only a 2-seat committee edge because Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) is so worthless. But Reid surprised us all yesterday and stood firm (subscription only), actually managing to beat McConnell at something. Democrats will get their 3-seat edge, and we actually have cause to give Harry Reid a pat on the back.

It's weird, I know.

-David Kleppinger, Morons.org Political Analyst